Monday was wineless and meatless (though not vegetarian, I used lamb stock in my couscous with grilled vegetables, beans, and pesto)
Tuesday was neither wineless or meatless. Friends brought over appetizers ( eggplant caponata, artichoke pesto) which we had with the 2011 Breton ? ??La Ritournelle” Anjou Rose. This is a PetNat. A little cloud y, sediment on side of bottle. Just a light petillance, light sweetness. Cr anberry fruit with an interestingly sour/funky/yeasty note. Fun, but maybe at end of its life. B/B-
Next up is a staple, grilled clams with fried garlic
2009 Luneau-Papin “Excelsior” Muscadet. Full, leesy, saline and mineral over lemony fruit. Big, tasty, but maybe needs a little bump i n acid to be really top rate Melon. B+/BGrilled lamb with za’atar, potato salad, purple cabbage slaw
1998 Ch. Gazin (Pomerol) Pretty tight when decanted but after a while (90 minutes) was showing prett y well. Black plums, coffee, cedar. Nice balance of fruits and acids, thoug h the tannins are a bit grittier than ideal. Still, with the lamb it worked well, and a good example of the strength of ‘98 RB. B+/A-2015 JPBrun “Le Rose d’Folie” Beaujolais Strawberry, hint of sweetness, floral, pleasant and light. B Skeeters were biting, so we moved indoors. Betsy made a raspberry tart, whi ch dessert eaters enjoyed. Good Tuesday.
Wednesday was grilled squid salad and oyster mushrooms. Wine was the
2008 Feudi di San Gregorio Fiano di Avellino. This was a closeout bin wine, but showing reasonably fresh. Pit fruits, citrus. almonds, flowers. Mode rate acids. Not very long. I think I prefer their Falanghina. B-We also had the 2009 Schäfer-Fröhlich Medium-Dry Riesling (AP #14 ). Just a whispering hint of RS, very good acids, apple and melon with a gi ngery twist. B
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C drinkable. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a p arty where it was only choice.Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivi ty, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.